This patent application pertains in general to hunting devices and in particular to implements for holding hunting equipment in a ready-for-use position.
A great deal of hunting is done by the hunter walking through fields and woods such that it is the hunter's movement which flushes the game from its hiding place and enables the hunter to realize a clear shot. Typical types of game usually sought by this method include quail and rabbits, among others, and although such hunters typically use rifles or shotguns, there is no reason other than possibly the size of the game being sought that the hunters could not also use bows and arrows. One aspect of this method of hunting is that the hunters normally carry their hunting equipment such as their rifles in their hand and arm in a somewhat ready-for-use position such that once game is flushed from its hiding place, the hunting equipment can be brought into a firing position very quickly. There is, however, another type of hunting in which the hunter conceals himself either in ground cover such as a thicket, or within a tree and waits for game to approach. This type of hunting requires a great deal more patience on the part of the hunter because quietness and lack of movement are critical determinants as to whether or not the particular game being sought will approach within a close enough radius for firing or will be scared away by some errant movement or sound. One example of this type of hunting is the use of a duck blind situated within the shoreline brush and reeds of a pond or lake such that duck and geese may approach within a close enough distance for accurate firing without being aware of the presence of the hunters.
Very often individuals who hunt deer using a bow and arrows will station themselves up in a tree and utilize a tree stand in order to provide a suitable platform on which to rest while they wait for the deer to approach. While it is true that tree stands are old in the art, such stands are not provided with suitable holding devices so that the hunting equipment being used by the hunter can be rested in a somewhat ready-for-use position so that the hunter will not have to hold this equipment while he waits patiently for the game. However, once game such as the deer is spotted, a further requirement of a suitable holding device is that it release the particular item of hunting equipment quickly so that the hunter can orient the equipment in a firing position.
Within the prior art are a variety of holder devices for bows and the Saunders bow holder is one example. This type of bow holder includes a vinyl-covered U-shaped member with a threaded stem extending from the base of the U. This particular holder is utilized by screwing the threaded stem into a tree trunk or limb utilizing a pair of these holders such that the bow can be supported and oriented in a ready-for-use position. The disadvantage with this type of design is that many states have outlawed devices which dig into the trees because of the obvious damage that they can cause. The specific bow holder referred to is offered by Saunders Archery Company of Columbus, Nebraska.
Another device with a different structure, although a related purpose, is a model number 3002 distributed by Precision Shooting Equipment Company. This model number refers to an Apache bow holder and is designed to attach to an Apache tree stand. This Apache bow holder utilizes a block construction with a series of outwardly extending pegs which are perpendicular to the surface of the block from which they extend and provide a wedging type of action for the bow such that it can be retained in close proximity to the tree stand. A clamp and wing nut assembly are utilized in order to secure the holder to the tree stand.
In addition to these two devices, there are certain patents which disclose holding brackets and related devices for bows, and the following list is an example of such patents.
______________________________________ Patent No. Patentee Issue Date ______________________________________ 1,865,134 Plimpton 6/28/32 3,179,102 Peckham 4/20/65 3,256,872 Koser 6/21/66 ______________________________________
Plimpton discloses a bracket device for use with a utility pole such that the bracket may be attached to the pole by means of two fasteners and two clearance holes and is further adapted with another pair of holes in order to receive an insulator.
Peckham discloses an attachment blind for archers wherein a pair of clamps are rigidly secured to the attachment blind and may be subsequently secured to the bow such that as the archer draws back on the arrow with the bow in an upright position, the attachment blind is also supported in an upright position and held by the archer.
Koser discloses a stand and stabilizer for archery bows wherein a bracket member is secured to the bow and extending from this bracket member are pair of legs which extend outwardly in order to contact the ground so that the bow may be placed in a free-standing orientation.
With the exception of the Apache bow holder, none of these disclosed bracket and archery devices are associated with the holding of both a bow in combination with the use of a tree stand. What the Apache bow holder does not provide is a one-piece construction which may be either oriented for holding or placed in a storage or transport position such that a plurality of holders can be used on any one tree stand depending upon the positional preference of the hunter and those holders not in use can be conveniently positioned for storage in an out-of-the-way orientation. Another disadvantage of the Apache bow holder is that the clamping means requires a member of sufficient minimum size in order to fit between the wing nut and the adjacent edge of the main body block and thus such a holder may only be applicable to a specifically styled tree stand. Therefore, it would be an advantage to provide a bow holder of a simpler construction which could be utilized in combination with virtually any tree stand and which in addition to positioning the bow in an upright, ready-to-be-used orientation could be stowed out of the way when not in use. The invention disclosed herein overcomes each of these disadvantages as will be apparent from the description which follows.